Andy Paull, (Andrew Paull, Xwechtáal, Xwupúkinem, Quitchtaal) (February 6, 1892 – July 28, 1959) was a Squamish leader, activist, coach, and lawyer.

Early life and family

Born to Dan Paull and Theresa Paull (née Lacket-Joe) of a prominent family, and was known to have a particularly close relationship with his maternal grandmother. It was his grandmother that gave him the name ''Xwechtáal'' ("the Serpent Slayer"), passed down from a legendary ancestor.Patterson, E. Palmer. "Andrew Paull and Canadian Indian Resurgence" (University of Washington Ph.D. thesis), 1962. His maternal grandfather was known as "Hundred Dollar Charlie," who reportedly gave the last potlatch on

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before it was banned by the Canadian government in 1885. Paull was raised in the village of Stawamus, near Squamish, British Columbia, but later his family moved to the village of Eslha7an in North Vancouver, British Columbia where he began to attend St. Paul's

Indian Residential School In Canada, the Indian residential school system was a network of boarding schools for Indigenous peoples. The network was funded by the Canadian government's Department of Indian Affairs and administered by Christian churches. The school sys ...

when it first opened in 1899. After six years at residential school, Paull spent two years learning from local Sḵwxwú7mesh chiefs. Paull's time at residential school was clearly important to him as he maintained a close relationship with a number of the oblates and

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 599. The term is o ...

s for his entire life.Herbert Francis Dunlop, "Andy Paull: As I Knew Him and Understood His Times" (Vancouver: The Order of the O.M.I. of St. Paul's Province, 1989). Nevertheless, he held his Sḵwxwú7mesh "education" to be at least equally important: In 1907, he began on-the-job training with the law offices of Hugh St. Quentin Cayley, and spent four years there learning the practice of law. He never became a professional lawyer, as he would have to become " enfranchised" (and give up his

Indian status The Indian Register is the official record of people registered under the ''Indian Act'' in Canada, called status Indians or ''registered Indians''. People registered under the ''Indian Act'' have rights and benefits that are not granted to othe ...

) to join the bar association. He worked instead as a longshoreman, as secretary to Chief Harry of Eslha7an.

Activism

Paull eventually moved on to organizing in political struggles on behalf of his people, and indigenous peoples across the country. In 1927 he testified before a special joint committee in Ottawa as an executive and secretary of the

Allied Tribes of British Columbia The Allied Tribes of British Columbia (ATBC) was an Indigenous rights organization formed following the First World War. There were 16 tribal groups involved, all focused on the issues of land claims and aboriginal title in British Columbia.McFar ...

. But after the Canadian federal government made it illegal for indigenous peoples in the country to organize funds for land claims issues, the Allied Tribes of BC quickly dissolved. At home he organized bands, orchestras, athletic teams and labor groups. In 1942 he became the business manager for the

Native Brotherhood of British Columbia The Native Brotherhood of British Columbia is a province-wide First Nations rights organization. It was founded on the 13 December, 1931, during a week long series of meetings between Haida representatives from Masset and Tsimshian representatives ...

, but in 1945 he split with the organization and formed the

North American Indian Brotherhood North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north'' i ...

. He spoke against enfranchisement for Aboriginals saying, "You would be merely selling your birthright for the doubtful privilege of putting a cross on a ballot every four years." A number of issues he fought for were Aboriginal rights and title, education, potlatching, and political organizing.

Early life and family

Activism

Notes

Further reading